Hoban football fell in OHSAA state title game, but Tylan Boykin was clutch vs. Massillon

CANTON — Tylan Boykin threw the game-winning touchdown pass for Archbishop Hoban.

Except he didn't.

Boykin's would-be legendary throw on fourth-and-8 at the Massillon 17-yard line hit the breadbasket of Hoban's Jackson Callaway in the front right corner of the end zone, but the sophomore wide receiver couldn't secure the ball as he fell to the ground with senior star linebacker Dorian Pringle covering him and 1:22 left to play.

The incomplete pass symbolized Hoban's last breath in its 7-2 loss to Massillon in the Division II Ohio High School Athletic Association state championship game Thursday night in front of an announced crowd of 14,846 at Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium.

A junior quarterback, Boykin thought for a split second he had delivered Hoban its sixth state title.

Instead, Hoban is now 5-3 in state championship games, all under 11th-year Knights coach Tim Tyrrell.

“When it hit [Callaway's] hands, I was just ready to jump and celebrate and scream,” Boykin told the Beacon Journal. “But unfortunately, he hit the ground pretty hard, and it bounced off his chest, so that kind of hurt. But it's football. Stuff like that happens.”

Hoban wound up being haunted by a fumble Boykin lost on a center-quarterback exchange in the first quarter, a blocked punt by Massillon in the second quarter that set up the game's lone touchdown and an interception Boykin threw with 1:18 remaining before halftime.

Still, in crunch time, Boykin did his part to give the Knights (13-2) what they needed to prevail over the Tigers (16-0).

The box score shows Boykin completed 3 of 9 passes for 19 yards with an interception and rushed seven times for 37 yards (5.3 average). It shows a safety accounted for Hoban's only points.

The statistics don't tell the story of Boykin's final pass or what flashed through the QB's mind as the play progressed.

Boykin explained he didn't think two of his targets were open, one on a crossing route and another on a wheel route, so he looked to run the ball. However, he saw a speedy Callaway matched up against Pringle, and Boykin pointed out Pringle had entered the title game coming off an injury. Boykin decided to give Callaway a chance and placed the ball where he wanted.

“[Boykin] did a great job of scrambling [to his right] and hitting a wide receiver,” Tyrrell said, “but we've got to make those plays.

“I really thought at the end we were going to [win]. I thought it was going to be an ugly win, but I thought it was going to be a win. But it just didn't happen. The ball didn't go our way that last play.”

Musical chairs at quarterback in recent seasons hasn't gone Hoban's way, either.

Shane Hamm served as Hoban's starting quarterback for four seasons and won three state championships (2017, 2018 and 2020).

Since Hamm graduated, Hoban has had three starters at the most important position on high school football's grandest stage.

The Knights finished as the Division II runner-up in 2021 with Jayvian Crable and in 2022 with JacQai Long as their starting quarterbacks. Crable transferred from Massillon to Hoban. Long transferred from Capital High School in Charleston, West Virginia, to Hoban.

Boykin had a better title-game performance than Crable or Long, and Boykin said he will be back with Hoban next season. Boykin's status gives the Knights a chance to achieve quarterback continuity for the first time since Hamm departed for college.

Tyrrell left wiggle room for Hoban's quarterback depth chart to shift before next season, but he also said of Boykin, “We've got him back, and I'm blessed we have him back.”

After playing at Hoban as a junior, Long returned to his home state for his senior year. The domino effect led Tyrrell to turn to Boykin in June to become the program's QB1.

Boykin had been playing quarterback for most of his life, but he spent his sophomore season as a cornerback. He also trained as a cornerback, not a QB, for the vast majority of this past offseason.

“We asked him in June if he wanted to play quarterback,” Tyrrell said. “He's one of the best corners in the state of Ohio, and he did it without batting an eye. I can't talk enough about Tylan Boykin for what he did for the team, for what he did to kind of put his own career a little bit on the back burner. There's no one that describes the word team as much as Tylan Boykin.

“Did he make mistakes? Yeah, I mean, he's a high school kid, but he's a warrior, and he never stopped and he never will. No matter what he's doing next year, what position he's playing, he's a warrior, and we're always going to count on him. He's a better young man than he is a football player.”

Boykin possesses upside at quarterback Tyrrell ought to find appealing.

It's impossible to ignore that a common thread in Hoban's three-game losing streak with state titles on the line is the Knights had a new starting QB each time.

The history isn't lost on Boykin.

“I think that's a big aspect of why we haven't been kind of where we wanted these past few years,” Boykin said. “The quarterback situation has changed every year. New faces from new places, really except for me, but I was at a different position. So being that second year at quarterback, like Shane Hamm, how he stayed all four years and was able to win three of those, that should be big part of me just being used to the offense and being able to deal.”

There are exceptions to every rule.

Massillon didn't need quarterback continuity to capture its first state title since the OHSAA tournament began in 1972. Senior DaOne Owens triumphed over Hoban in his first season with Massillon after transferring from Copley.

Owens became an outlier for a few reasons, including his transcendent talent as a dual threat and Massillon's elite defense. Boykin's clutch pass dropping to the ground was another factor.

More on Hoban's loss to Massillon: Turnovers and penalties prove costly for Knights in OHSAA state championship

Boykin seemed to process the disappointing outcome the right way, a sign he possesses leadership qualities Hoban can lean on even more moving forward. He discussed the turnovers with which he was involved and vowed to use the offseason to improve. He cited moments other than the pass at the end of the game.

“It's definitely fuel — just the fact that the game should have never got to that point,” Boykin said. “We had a lot of opportunities where we just made mistakes, turned the ball over and [eight] penalties [for 54 yards] killed us.

“But we have to use that as fuel. All players coming back [next season], we all know the mission from the time [Friday] starts. From 12 o'clock tonight, we know next year you want to be in the same spot at the same game and hopefully win it.”

Plenty can change in a year, but Hoban should be in a good spot if it has status quo at quarterback next season.

More OHSAA state championship details: This is how Hoban football's loss to Massillon unfolded

Nate Ulrich can be reached at nulrich@thebeaconjournal.com. On Twitter: @ByNateUlrich.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Hoban lost to Massillon football, yet Tylan Boykin delivered